The relationship between plants and their environment has always been a core issue in ecological research. This study about how plant architecture and leaf traits respond to environmental changes helps to more deeply understand the adaptive mechanisms of plants in diverse environments. Although there have been related studies, a systematic analysis on a China-wide scale is still lacking. To address this gap, we conducted a meta-analysis of 115 studies across China examining plant architectural and leaf trait responses to environmental changes. The dataset includes 849 observations across 11 ecological variables, such as the mean annual precipitation, mean annual temperature, soil type, and elevation, and evaluates their effects on seven key plant traits. The results indicated that variations in the plant height, diameter at breast height (DBH), and root-to-shoot ratio are primarily influenced by the soil type and mean annual precipitation. In contrast, the soil type and mean annual sunshine duration mainly affected the specific leaf area (SLA), leaf area, leaf thickness, and leaf dry matter content. Moreover, while the magnitude of trait responses varies across precipitation, temperature, elevation, and soil property gradients, the impacts of environmental change are particularly pronounced under more extreme conditions. This study provides robust scientific evidence for understanding the effects of environmental change on plant growth across China and offers valuable insights into ecological conservation and the sustainable use of plant resources.

Understanding the spatial distribution patterns and environmental drivers of plant communities is fundamental for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management. Bombax ceiba is a widely distributed tree species that occurs in both humid tropical rainforests and drought-prone dry-hot valleys, representing two strongly contrasting ecological environments. However, the spatial patterns and environmental drivers of plant communities associated with B. ceiba across these habitats remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated B. ceiba-associated plant communities in two representative habitats in Yunnan Province, Southwest China: a tropical rainforest in Mengla and a dry-hot valley in Yuanjiang. The species composition, community structure, and spatial coordinates of associated plants were recorded in replicated 20 m × 20 m plots. Spatial distribution patterns were analyzed using the pair-correlation function g(r), while environmental drivers were examined using Pearson correlation analysis and redundancy analysis (RDA). Species richness was substantially higher in the tropical rainforest (41 species from 33 families) than in the dry-hot valley (19 species from 14 families). Both communities contained a substantial proportion of tropical Asian floristic elements. Most dominant species exhibited aggregated spatial distributions at small spatial scales (0–7 m), indicating strong dispersal limitation and microhabitat heterogeneity. Spatial associations varied across scales: in the dry-hot valley, species associations alternated between positive and negative correlations at small scales (0–5 m) and shifted toward positive correlations at larger distances, whereas in the tropical rainforest negative associations were more common at small scales and positive associations increased at larger spatial scales. Environmental drivers differed markedly between habitats. In the dry-hot valley, community attributes were positively associated with slope, precipitation, and soil ammonium nitrogen, suggesting that community assembly is influenced by interactions between topography and water availability. In contrast, tropical rainforest communities were more strongly associated with soil phosphorus availability and temperature-related variables. These findings highlight distinct community assembly mechanisms in contrasting habitats and provide ecological insights for vegetation restoration in dry-hot valleys and biodiversity conservation in tropical rainforests.